Valley Lg. Prospect Reports

Official League WebsiteValley League League top 30 prospects (list)Perfect Game Summer Collegiate top prospect coverageProlific
hitting may win pennants, but astute pitching more often wins
championships, and that adage defined the 2012 Valley League season.
The
Winchester Royals (North) and Waynesboro Generals (South) handily won
division championships this summer on the strength of wide-open
offences, but in the end the Harrisonburg Turks, who led the league
in ERA, were the last team standing as they pitched their way to a
league title by beating Waynesboro in the semi-finals and Winchester
in a best-of-5 final. The Turks had finished a distant second to
Waynesboro in the Southern Division during the regular season.
Waynesboro
led the Valley League in hitting at .310 and Winchester set a league
record by smashing 84 home runs (most homers by any summer-baseball
team), but the offensive attacks of both teams were largely
neutralized in post-season play by Harrisonburg’s superior pitching
staff, led by lefthander Shawn O’Neill, who led the league with a
1.40 ERA while pitching the clinching victories in both series
against the Generals and Royals.
Harrisonburg
(34-18 overall), Waynesboro (34-15) and Winchester (34-16) dominated
the 12-team Valley League to such a degree this season that they were
the only clubs to post winning records. Moreover, they dominate the
accompanying list of the league’s 30 best prospects with 18
selections among them. Appropriately, six of the seven Winchester
players and four of the five Waynesboro players on the list are
position players, while five of the six Harrisonburg players
represented are pitchers.
For
the second year in a row, an outfielder from a North Carolina college
occupies the No. 1 spot. In 2011, that player was Wake Forest’s Mac
Williamson, who finished second in the league in batting, homers and
RBIs and went on to become the initial Valley League player selected
in the 2012 draft (Giants, third round). Western Carolina’s Julian
Ridings, a multi-purpose talent who topped the league with a .435
average, claimed that distinction this summer.FAST
FACTS
Year
League Established: 1961.States
Represented in League: Virginia.No.
of Teams in League: 12 (12 in 2011).Regular-Season
Champion (best overall record): NORTH—Winchester
Generals (29-13). SOUTH—Waynesboro
Generals (31-13).Post-Season
Champion: Harrisonburg Turks.Teams,
PG CrossChecker Summer 50/Final Ranking:
No. 13 Harrisonburg Turks, No. 17 Winchester Royals; No. 36
Waynesboro Generals.No.
1 Prospect, 2011 (per PG CrossChecker): Mac
Williamson, of, Harrisonburg Turks (Wake Forest; drafted by
Giants/2012, 3rd round).First
2011 Player Selected, 2012 Draft:
Mac Williamson, of, Harrisonburg Turks (Wake Forest/Giants, third
round).Most
Valuable Player: Unavailable.Pitcher
of the Year: Shawn O’Neill, lhp,
Harrisonburg Turks.BATTING
LEADERS (All games)
Batting
Average: Julian Ridings, of,
Waynesboro Generals (.435).Slugging
Percentage: Joseph Odom, c,
Winchester Royals (.706).On-Base
Average: Ryan Sullivan, of,
Covington Lumberjacks (.516).Home
Runs: Joseph Odom, c, Winchester
Royals (17).RBIs:
Jimmy Yezzo, 3b, Winchester Royals (62).Stolen
Bases: Blake Sipe, of, Staunton
Braves (20).PITCHING
LEADERS (All games)
Wins:
Dillon Ortman, rhp, Harrisonburg Turks (7).ERA:
Shawn O’Neill, lhp, Harrisonburg Turks (1.40).Saves:
Josh Bullock, rhp, Waynesboro Generals (10).Strikeouts:
Kevin Herget, rhp, Strasburg Express (77).BEST
TOOLS
Best
Athlete: Julian Ridings, of,
Waynesboro GeneralsBest
Hitter: Julian Ridings, of,
Waynesboro GeneralsBest
Power: Jimmy Yezzo, 3b, Winchester
RoyalsFastest
Base Runner: Julian Ridings, of,
Waynesboro GeneralsBest
Defensive Player: Ryan Breen, c,
Waynesboro GeneralsBest
Velocity: Shay Maltese, rhp,
Haymarket SenatorsBest
Breaking Ball: Shay Maltese, rhp,
Haymarket SenatorsBest
Command: Dillon Ortman, rhp,
Harrisonburg TurksTOP
30 PROSPECTS
1.
JULIAN RIDINGS, of, Waynesboro Generals (Western Carolina/JR in 2013)SCOUTING
PROFILE: A highly-athletic talent
with a loose, lively body and five-tool potential, Ridings was a key
factor in leading Waynesboro to the best regular-season record in the
league. Just as important, his absence from the lineup, because of a
shoulder injury, in the Generals final game of the season, a 2-1 loss
to eventual champion Harrisonburg in the semi-finals, was
instrumental in his team’s demise. The lefthanded-hitting Ridings
was a significant catalyst atop the Waynesboro batting order, leading
the league with a .419 average while also finishing among the leaders
in slugging (.657), on-base percentage (.454), runs (45), hits (72)
and stolen bases (15). Moreover, he kept defenses honest by dropping
down some 20 bunts for base hits. While the 6-foot-2, 175-pound
Ridings is a well-rounded player, his raw speed is his biggest
weapon. It is a significant asset in all phases of his game and he
maximized it this summer, more than ever before, by staying on top of
balls more consistently and beating them into the ground. He began
making solid strides overall as a hitter during the spring at Western
Carolina, hitting .331-3-21, yet his inclination then was to look for
pitches he could drive out of the park. Even as he consciously
changed his approach at the plate over the summer to make better use
of his speed, he still hit seven homers and drove in 39 runs. If
anything, Ridings still needs to curb his aggression in order to
improve his plate discipline as he posted near-identical and
undesirable walk-to-strikeout ratios in the spring (5-25) as the
summer (5-27). But that same aggression plays well for Ridings on the
bases and in the outfield. He has plenty of range in center field,
and his arm definitely plays at the position. Ridings still needs to
add physical strength to his lean frame and must continue to work at
curbing his emotions as he gets overtly down on himself almost every
time he makes an out.

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